# British TV Shows That Have Been Popular In The U.S **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 11, 2023, 8:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018 "2023-01-11T08:35:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![peedin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peedin/32/14095_2.png) [@peedin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/peedin)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/21 "2023-01-11T14:50:59Z")
My father loved \*The Two Ronnies \* and _The Dave Allen Show_ both shown Sunday nights on WTTW in Chicago. ---
**Author:** ![BrickBat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac91a4/32.png) [@BrickBat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrickBat)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/22 "2023-01-11T16:47:48Z")
Well I got hooked on ‘Eastenders’ beginning in late '89 or so. ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/23 "2023-01-11T17:35:41Z")
I remember watching those on the same channel back in the 1980s. Good times. There was another show called _Good Neighbors_ (?) that popped up occasionally too that I liked. ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/24 "2023-01-11T17:37:36Z")
My theory is that the BBC prefers to put their shows on specialized streaming services like Britbox or Acorn than to put them on BBC America. And when I say “prefers”, I mean “thinks they can make more money with” ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/25 "2023-01-11T17:39:27Z")
> [@bob\_2](#): > > Only if being chased by a bevvy of half-naked beauties. …while patting the short old bald man on the head. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/26 "2023-01-11T18:14:51Z")
Does “reality TV” count? Great British Bake Off/Baking Show is the flagship, naturally. ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/27 "2023-01-11T18:23:41Z")
> [@bordelond](#): > > Patrick McGoohan’s _The Prisoner_ also has/had an audience in the U.S., but I don’t know how it was normally broadcast (e.g. was it also a PBS program?). The Prisoner was broadcast on CBS I’m pretty sure. In any case it was one of the three main US networks at the time. ---
**Author:** ![Bashorian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bashorian/32/3546_2.png) [@Bashorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bashorian)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/28 "2023-01-11T18:42:18Z")
> [@LVBoPeep](#): > > I think Broadchurch was popular and introduced a lot of people to Olivia Coleman. Jodie Whittaker was in that too, right? ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/29 "2023-01-11T18:43:18Z")
> [@Bashorian](#): > > Jodie Whittaker was in that too, right? Yes, she was, and it was probably a lot of Americans’ first real exposure to her, as well. I remember that, when it was announced that she would be taking over the lead role in _Doctor Who_, her role in _Broadchurch_ was often referred to, as a point of reference. ---
**Author:** ![Bashorian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bashorian/32/3546_2.png) [@Bashorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bashorian)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/30 "2023-01-11T18:45:44Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > Does “reality TV” count? Great British Bake Off/Baking Show is the flagship, naturally. Most definitely. I watch the Roku channel dedicated to this somewhat often. ---
**Author:** ![planetcory](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/planetcory/32/1032_2.png) [@planetcory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/planetcory)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/31 "2023-01-11T18:51:35Z")
> [@LVBoPeep](#): > > I believe there is a US version though I didn’t see the point of watching it since the original was so good. It was slightly less good than the original but still very good. They added an extra twist to the ending that would’ve made for an interesting second season. But no one watched. ---
**Author:** ![iamatractorboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iamatractorboy/32/21261_2.png) [@iamatractorboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamatractorboy)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/32 "2023-01-11T20:17:03Z")
Was _Only Fools and Horses_ ever shown in the US? Massively popular here in the UK in the 80s and 90s, and critically acclaimed as well (at least, until they flogged the dead horse and brought it back in the early 00s). ---
**Author:** ![Cardigan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardigan/32/187_2.png) [@Cardigan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardigan)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/33 "2023-01-11T20:26:03Z")
Don’t forget _Sherlock_. You know, the one featuring Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/34 "2023-01-11T20:29:11Z")
> [@iamatractorboy](#): > > Was _Only Fools and Horses_ ever shown in the US? Not widely, I don’t believe. It wouldn’t surprise me if, like a lot of British shows, it was shown by some local public television stations (as was the case with other British shows back then), but I confess, I barely know anything about the show, so I don’t think it ever had much exposure here. ---
**Author:** ![iamatractorboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iamatractorboy/32/21261_2.png) [@iamatractorboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamatractorboy)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/35 "2023-01-11T20:32:34Z")
As I suspected really. It never seems to get mentioned on the Dope when discussing the best British shows but at its best it was peerless. Perhaps it was felt the humour wouldn’t ‘translate’. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/36 "2023-01-11T20:32:48Z")
> [@solost](#): > > As a kid I used to occasionally watch “Are You Being Served?” on PBS. I remember this show was on a TON but I don’t remember anyone being in to it or even watching it. Maybe it was the absolute cheapest show for PBS to get. I do remember _Mr. Bean_ being pretty popular. My step-grandpa absolutely loved it! ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/37 "2023-01-11T20:45:09Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > I do remember _Mr. Bean_ being pretty popular. Speaking of Rowan Atkinson vehicles – _Blackadder_ has a dedicated following in the U.S. I don’t know if it was ever shown on U.S. UHF or cable stations when it was new in the 1980s, but by the mid-1990s I remember many people in my social orbit renting the _Blackadder_ series on VHS, making copies, sharing them with friends, etc. Much of this same cohort also enjoyed _A Bit of Fry and Laurie_, and later shows such as _Spaced_ and _Black Books_. Not sure if it’s more accurate to say these latter three programs are “_popular in the U.S._” or that they “_have a significant cult following in the U.S._” ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/38 "2023-01-11T20:48:44Z")
> [@bordelond](#): > > Speaking of Rowan Atkinson vehicles – _Blackadder_ has a dedicated following in the U.S. I don’t know if it was ever shown on U.S. UHF or cable stations when it was new in the 1980s I first watched it on WTTW (the Chicago PBS station) in '89 and '90. As with a lot of British shows back then, I think that it was a matter of being carried locally by certain PBS stations, rather than being a “network” PBS show, like _Masterpiece Theater_, which virtually all PBS stations carried. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/39 "2023-01-11T20:50:07Z")
Yeah I fall into that category of Anglophile TV consumer, and those shows (along with _The Young Ones_) were my gateway. But I don’t think any of them were very popular in the US. The only people I know who have heard of _Spaced_ are people I’ve lent my _Spaced_ boxed set to. _The IT Crowd_ got popular in the US, well after it had first aired, because it got on Netflix, like _Bake Off_. I think _QI_ and _Taskmaster_ are very popular now because of YouTube, especially since Taskmaster just chucks their stuff up there for free! ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2023, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018/40 "2023-01-11T20:56:42Z")
_Danger Man_ was broadcast in the US under the title _Secret Agent_. _Jason King_ _U.F.O._ _Space: 1999_ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/british-tv-shows-that-have-been-popular-in-the-u-s/978018.md?page=3)